What Are Baby Probiotics?
A probiotic is a live bacteria that provides health benefits, particularly for your gut.
Baby probiotics are exactly what they sound like—they’re probiotics that are safe and specially formulated for babies!
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Why Are Probiotics Important?
Let’s back up for a second to talk about why you’d want to take probiotics.
Our bodies are full of bacteria. And although that may sound like a bad thing, less than one percent of bacteria makes us sick. (source) Other bacteria in our systems are considered “good bacteria,” since they are vital for our bodies to function and play a key role in keeping us healthy.
Probiotics ensure that our systems have enough good bacteria to function the way they are intended to.
Do Babies Need Probiotics?
Amniotic fluid is not sterile—it’s your baby’s first introduction to bacteria. And the kind of bacteria in the amniotic fluid is influenced by mom’s gut and oral flora.
In a perfect world, moms would have great flora to pass onto their babies. But over the last century, we have been subjected to antibiotics, GMOs, sugary/starchy diets, and lots of processed foods—all of which can degrade the gut flora passed onto our babies.
Baby probiotics are a baby’s first line of defense, since they help to improve the balance of “good bacteria” in their body.
Benefits of Baby Probiotics
Because baby probiotics increase the amount of good bacteria in the body, they do wonders for overall health, but are especially helpful for:
✔ Digestive issues
Without the proper balance of gut bacteria, baby may have colic, acid reflux, constipation, diarrhea, or develop more serious digestive issues like Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) or Crohn’s Disease. A study found that fecal transplant in adults (placing a bit of “healthy” poo into the colon of an unhealthy person) cured 91-93 percent of patients with C. difficile. This supports the idea that good gut flora can treat and prevent digestive issues—and why we may want to use probiotics for infants.
✔ Immune system issues
Eighty percent of our immune system resides in our gut, so it makes sense that sub-optimal gut flora would cause an ill-functioning immune system. When gut bacteria isn’t optimal, baby’s immune system is not going to be optimal. That means baby will be more likely to catch colds, flus, and other illnesses. We can ward off some of these issues with the use of probiotics for babies.
✔ Mood
There is a large pool of data supporting the gut-brain connection. In fact, 80-90 percent of the serotonin (the feel-good hormone) and dopamine (a neurotransmitter that helps regulate the brain’s pleasure center) in our bodies is made in our gut.
One study found that certain probiotic species reduce anxiety and depression, increase dopamine and serotonin production, and work better than conventional drugs at reducing stress-induced anxiety, depression, and cognitive dysfunction. They also work to lower cortisol and restore serotonin levels to normal.
Another study found that different gut bacteria can actually change a mouse from timid to bold and vice-versa. Further, researchers found that if corrected early enough, good bacteria could help reverse the mouse pup’s anxiety; but if they were weaned by the time they got the good bacteria, they continued to have high levels of anxiety. Of course, mouse trials don’t directly correlate to humans, but the results are interesting and support what we do know about baby’s gut flora needs.
✔ Weight problems
Probiotics for infants may even impact your baby’s weight. (Strange as it sounds!) One study found that mice with a TLR5 deficiency (a protein that keeps gut flora balanced) had excessive weight gain, insulin resistance, diabetes, and fatty liver disease. What was really interesting is that the researchers transplanted some fecal matter from the overweight mice to skinny mice and the skinny mice started eating more, gaining weight, and eventually developed the metabolic issues of the TLR5 deficient mice. Long story short, the weight and metabolic issues of these mice were a direct result of bad gut bacteria.
✔ Skin issues
Baby’s skin is particularly sensitive and some sources say that baby skin issues like baby eczema, cradle cap, and baby acne are caused by imbalanced gut flora. Studies suggest supplementing with with L. rhamnosus, L. paracasei , and B. longum while pregnant and nursing can significantly reduce the risk of eczema in infants.
This is further supported by countless studies that prove a correlation between acne and digestive issues. In fact, acne patients have considerably more leaky gut issues and inflammation than those without acne. Another study found that suboptimal gut flora also contributed to the skin being less efficient as a protective organ and more susceptible to inflammation and infection.
Best Baby Probiotics
There are two main types of baby probiotics: powdered and liquid. Powdered baby probiotics are more prevalent, but some parents find it easier to administer liquid probiotics with a syringe or dropper.
Here are four baby probiotics that I can recommend.